2024.01.26 | Fill My Plans with Purpose

“Fill My Plans with Purpose”
A reflection by Ashley Wai'olu Moore 1/26/25
Scripture Reading: Luke 4:14-21

Good morning, Beloveds. I am grateful to have this opportunity to bring the message today! We have been using a liturgical theme titled "Six Stone Jars: the Economy of Jesus." I have come prepared to share my thoughts with you today around the sermon title “Fill My Plans with Purpose.” I will be exploring what we can do in the months and years ahead.

I have been unplugged for the last few days and want to note that this message was written before I learned about the mass deportations and other egregious acts that have begun taking place. I would have had more to say if I HAD known.

Friends, we are living in treacherous and dangerous times. The rotten core that this country was built on is boiling over. Authoritarianism and fascism are on the rise in this country. The forces of bigotry and hatred have been emboldened to openly spew their toxic rhetoric as if such ideas were completely reasonable. Public discourse has sadly become so murky and confused that these outrageous and vile lies are not just tolerated, but allowed to persist and grow. Some would rightly argue that this has been going on for a long time. But what is happening now has not been seen since it occurred in Germany between the world wars. #47 has regained the office of president, bringing the architects of Project 2025 with him while the Supreme Court has given him presidential immunity from criminal prosecution.

In these are sinful and evil times, we need hope and strategies for how to survive the journey. How should we respond? How do we, as people of faith, navigate these treacherous waters? How can we be kingdom builders in such a sinful age?

Please pray with me….
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Sin is not something that you hear talked about in UCC churches, nor indeed in progressive Protestant churches generally. Growing up being brow-beaten about what a sinner I was and told I was going to be consigned to damnation, so I can honestly say that I haven’t missed it. I know that I am not the only one here at Eden Church who has suffered such Bible burns. But now that I have largely healed from my abuse and have obtained a formal theological education, I recognize that to ignore the issue of sin would still be operating out of my own sense of wounding. So, in order to reach the kind of spiritual maturity that I seek, I have had to grapple with it. I ask your indulgence as I explore the subject briefly.

The definition of ‘sin’ that I find most compelling is that it is a disconnectedness or estrangement from God. As Houston Smith writes, the “bondage that imprisons us is attachment to ourselves, with the fear and guilt that follow...concern for ourselves sabotages our love for others.”1 It might be argued that love is only sabotaged by such division. As long as we perceive separateness, maintain and reinforce such separation, the “other” can never be ‘one of us.’ Thus, "sin can be better understood as the rejection of radical love."2 When we fail to recognize the Divine spark within everyone we encounter, we are disconnecting from God and, thus, living in sin (personal or collective). Such estrangement is what I consider to be sinful.

Right now, for the first time in history, we have not only enough food to feed everyone in the world, but the means to get it to them - why are people still suffering? Right now, there is more wealth and more access to natural resources than at any time in history – why are people still poor? As a species, we could eliminate a whole lot of suffering if we learned to recognize the divine within everyone. If we can learn to see that separateness is an illusion, that we are all connected, that we are all children of God we could respond accordingly. Jesus said ‘whatever you do or do not do unto the least of these, you do unto me.’3 How many times a day do we have a chance to be kind to Jesus? To ‘do right’ by our God? We need to remind ourselves that, as Cornell West says, “Justice is what love looks like in public.”

The Hebrew word Shalom is a salutation and a concept meaning “May you be complete, whole and lacking nothing.” Author Steven Bouma-Prediger asserts that “Authentic Christian discipleship, in contrast to our culture, provides another, more shalom-giving, life-affirming way (of being). As Christians, our passion for shalom should embrace all creatures-for their sake and
for the sake of our human neighbors whose voices cry out for justice to roll down like waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”4

But if you look at the news these days, it’s obvious that we are a long, long way from such a reality. The man who sits in the White House right now is the antithesis of such shalom. He is about as anti-Christian as you can get, short of genocide. And the plight of the people and families who have suffered at our southern border demonstrate that he possesses such predilections. I used to believe that he would only need the absence of restrictions to fully devolve into the mindset of a fascist serial killer. And now SCOTUS has given him that.

In his own way, #47 represents the culmination of the colonialist, imperialist, capitalist, white supremacist ideology of this nation’s history. He is selfish and self-serving in the extreme. He exhibits no empathy nor sense of human decency. He repeatedly demonstrates his willingness to engage in lying, deceit, manipulation, gas-lighting, fabrication, gossip, slander, and does not have any qualms about attempting to destroy anything or anyone that could stand in his way. He is willing to exploit anything and everything for his own self-interest. He is Godless; the epitome of such sinfulness.

What’s worse, he has empowered a cabal of like-minded sycophants who are systematically attempting to underme or dismantle hard-won protections for our planet, the poor, the marginalized, the old & infirm, LGBT people (especially ‘Gender non-binary’ people) and anyone else who isn’t a conservative straight, white male. They are working hard right now to disrupt the functioning of our government and attacking our country’s foundational beliefs. They have become really good at gas-lighting. Like puppeteers, they keep people occupied, fighting windmills, while dismantling what the people truly care about in secret, out of public view. What’s more, they are attacking our foundational Christian beliefs, the very teachings of Jesus. They want to impede our work by dominating our attention, making us afraid, making us feel intimidated and powerless so that we give up in despair. Don’t take the bait! Do not play their game.

The time ahead will require a great deal from us. It will take a lot of hard work and tenacity to restore the freedoms and equalities that are being taken away. And they will be pleased if it exhausts us – leaves us tired, hopeless, etc. We cannot let them have that effect on us. As Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once noted, “we must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.” We cannot let them steal our joy – because “the world didn’t give it and the world can’t take it away.”

(pause)

As people of faith, how are we to respond? How can we navigate through these treacherous waters? As disciples of Christ, how do we answer the call to kingdom co-creation in the midst of all of this sinful selfishness? How do we encourage ourselves and bolster our faith?

Thankfully, the economy of Jesus is shalom-giving. Thankfully, God’s goodness endures forever! God‘s grace and mercy follows us all of our days. While the thief comes to steal and kill and destroy, Jesus came so that we may have life, and have it more abundantly.

What shall we say to these things? Whom shall we fear if God be for us? Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for God is with me. ALL of our help comes from the Lord! God is a Way maker, miracle worker, promise keeper, our light in the darkness. God has turned my morning into dancing before and God will do it again.

Even when we don’t see it, God is working. Even when we can’t feel it, God is working. While weeping may endure for a night, joy comes in the morning. So I won’t be afraid of this darkness.

God’s abundance is for everyone. Our God‘s shalom is for everyone. We see this in today’s text. Jesus proclaims his Spirit-anointed purpose through his reading of the Isaiah scroll. Like in the Beatitudes, he declares that there is good news in God’s shalom-giving economy for those who are most in need:

18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind,
to set free those who are oppressed,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

Now the words of Isaiah for the listeners in this context would have evoked memories of the conquering of Jerusalem by the Assyrian and Babylonian Empires. But instead of offering criticism for Rome or a rebuke of Israel’s complicit leaders, Jesus spoke words of hope for the poor, for the captives and for the oppressed. This is because the economy of Jesus is not about money or power. It is about God’s love for God’s people. About shalom for all, where “the commodities of time, energy and relationships of mutual sustenance”5 are most important.

How do we answer the call to kin-dom co-creation in these times? We do so by putting God at the center of our purpose. As the song goes, we position ourselves so that the cross is before us and the ways of the world are behind us. We orient our vision so that the radical love of Christ is our constant reminder of what is most meaningful. In doing so, we lean into our faith and remember “whose we are.”

What is asked of us is to love the way that Jesus loved us; to bear witness against aggression, oppression and hypocrisy until it can’t be ignored any longer. To do right by our God who is found among the “least privileged”. Despite everything that is happening in this country, MY purpose remains the same: to do whatever I can to help manifest God’s kin-dom and establish God’s shalom on earth.

When we place God at the center, we disentangle ourselves from the bondage of sin that is attachment to ourselves. When we place Jesus at the center, we humble ourselves and remember what he taught us - how to respond, how not to conform, how not engage – how to subvert the ways of the world. Justice is what that Jesus love looks like in public. For when we learn to yield to God’s ways, God’s power is able to flow through us, amplifying and magnifying each act of co-creation and spiritual activism.

To paraphrase spiritual teacher Ram Dass, “Whether this is the first day of the Apocalypse or the first day of the Golden Age, the work remains the same...to love each other and ease as much suffering as possible.”6

So don’t be drawn into the ways of the world. Don’t take the bait! Do not play their game. We cannot fight fire with fire. Keep Jesus’ teachings foremost in your mind and play by God’s rules. Remain vigilant and seriously ask yourself WWJD? Like Mahatmas Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr did. Do it as an act of creation towards the kin-dom of heaven on earth. Do it so that we might reap what we sew. Invest in the economy of Jesus.

Romans 12:2,21 tells us “Do not be conformed to this world (other translation: age), but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect. 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

As Ephesians 6 tells us “11 “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore, put on the full armor of God, so that ... you may be able to stand your ground.”

How do we encourage ourselves and bolster our faith as we fight the good fight in these times? How do we keep from becoming discouraged or disheartened?

Through cultivating spiritual practices, we ground and center ourselves and reconnect with the spark of divine light within. Prayer is chief among these. A gratitude practice also helps me greatly. Having a favorite song to sing that lifts our spirits. Or reading the Psalms of David where he expresses his dismay over the challenges he’s facing and implores God for help. And there are many other practices, all of which help us to return our focus to what is good and righteous and true, realigning ourselves with the shalom-giving economy of Jesus.

As Sojourner Truth said, ““Life is a hard battle anyway. If we laugh and sing a little as we fight the good fight of freedom, it makes it all go easier. I will not allow my life’s light to be determined by the darkness around me.”

But sometimes, in the midst of some anxiety producing circumstance, we just need a quick attitude adjustment. Now I have a friend who is a Buddhist Monk and he recently taught me a concept that has become a profoundly helpful practice for me. I would like to share that with you because I believe it is a powerful tool for these times. It is the concept of a Dharma Gate.

In his practice as a Buddhist Monk, living in the present moment is the central philosophy and goal. He endeavors not to dwell in the past or worry about the future, but meditates on life as it is in the here and now. So one day I asked him about how he deals with anxiety producing stimuli in a given moment. He replied, “I choose to go through a Dharma gate.” When I asked him what that was, he explained that it is making a conscious choice to move from one state of mind to another. To shift one’s perspective from focusing on something distressing or toxic to one that is balanced and life giving. He described a “gate” as a kind of portal one may move through. It is a vehicle, a practice, a focus. Something that we can use to cross into a better state of wellness, balance, into a more compassionate way of living.

I was intrigued by this idea. And as I thought about it, I remembered something I had read years before by the Buddhist nun Pema Chödröne. She said, “Every day, at the moment when things (are getting) edgy, we can ask ourselves, “Am I going to practice peace, or am I going to war?? Cultivating nonaggression is cultivating peace.”7 And I realized that she had been describing the choice we can make in any given moment about which state of mind we want to live in. Or as the old 12-step saying goes, “Pain is inevitable. Misery is optional.”

An instant attitude adjustment.

I have found this useful in moments where I have found myself getting wrapped up in some anxiety over something I can’t control or letting myself get angry over something. I stop myself and make a choice to change my focus. I choose to focus instead on my gratitude for the goodness of God, on the wonder of God’s vast creation and on the shalom-giving economy of Jesus. It’s like hoping into a parallel universe where I can exist as my best self. It takes practice, but it is a powerful tool that we can all use when we find ourselves feeling overwhelmed or discouraged. I hope you find it helpful.

Practice peace. Sow kindness. Cultivate love. Do unto others as you would have done unto you. Do good to everyone, always. And as Gandhi said, “Be the peace you wish to see in the world.” This is how we can live in Jesus’ economy.

Despite the vitriol of our times, we are called to be Christ to one another. Christ’s embodiment of radical love provides the ground for our way of being in the world. Our collective prophetic work involves bearing witness to injustice, standing up for our global neighbors, speaking truth to power and endeavoring to dismantle systemic evil, systemic violence as well as the socio-economic and political systems that create, maintain and otherwise benefit from them. Let us repent from the narrative of our colonialist past and stand firmly against all that breaks God's shalom for God’s creation.

God, please fill my plans with your purpose.

Amen.

1 Smith, Houston, The World’s Religions. New York, HarperCollins Publishers, 1991: 344.
2 Cheng, Patrick S., An Introduction to Queer Theology - Radical Love. New York, Seabury Books: 71.
3 Matthew 25:40
4 Steven Bouma-Prediger, Environmental Racism, in HUTL pg 267.
5 Marcia McFee, Six Stone Jars: the Economy of Jesus. Sermon Fodder booklet, p3.
6 A paraphrase of one of the spiritual teachings of Ram Dass.
7 Pema Chödröne, When Things Fall Apart